The 1961 Ford Falcon Ranchero was touted in Ford brochures as being “America’s lowest-priced pickup”, and having “New economy . . . up to 30 miles per gallon!” Low price and high mpg, that’s a hard combo to beat, especially when it’s combined in such a unique vehicle as a fourth-generation Ranchero. The seller has this one listed here on eBay in beautiful Raleigh, North Carolina, and the current bid is $3,050, but the reserve isn’t met. Thanks to Bob_in_TN for catching that it’s actually a 1961 model, not a 1960 as the seller has it listed.
Another vehicle on my master wish list is an early first-generation Falcon Ranchero like this second-year 1961 model. A Falcon Sedan Delivery would be right behind it, or maybe ahead of it depending on how I’m feeling when I edit my list. The first-gen Falcon Rancheros were made from 1960 through 1965 and they’re pretty manageable at just under 16 feet.
This example looks pretty nice overall and appears to have been restored at some point, but it’s slowly creeping back to needing some work again. Some rust is visible and inside the bed looks fairly rugged. But this must also be a working truck, or it can be, so seeing some wear and tear in the hauling portion of this rig is natural. I bet this was a tan car originally rather than white, but that’s just a guess.
The interior looks great for the most part. There is no padded dash to have cracks in it and the seat and carpet look nice. The painted surfaces could use sprucing up and you probably noticed that a clutch pedal is missing. I expected to see a three-on-the-tree manual in this car but this one has a Ford automatic. The transmission is a bit of a mystery, the seller says the new engine is mated to the original two-speed Ford-O-Matic, but then they say that it comes with a newly-rebuilt three-speed C4. Maybe there’s an extra transmission?
The engine upgrade isn’t quite what most of you expected, I’m guessing most of you thought there would be a 260, 289, or 302 V8 here. This is Ford’s 200-cu.in. OHV inline-six, which was a nice upgrade from the original 144 or 170 inline-six. This engine is said to be from a 1967 or 1968 Mustang and they say it runs great and has a ton of new parts and comes with extra parts. How would you restore this Falcon, or would you just drive it as is?
This reminded me of the mint 1st gen El Camino 😎 i saw on the hwy this summer. It was a stunning car.
Love it, looks like our XM Falcon Ute, which had a 175ci 6 pot, pursuit motor. The 200ci came later.
Correction, 179ci pursuit motor.
I suspect you are correct, Scotty: this Ranchero’s original paint was probably beige; and that it has been restored already, or at least refurbished, likely 20+ years ago. Doesn’t look bad, just (again) showing its age. Pretty extensive list of new-ish parts, both installed and still in boxes.
It is fun to take a look at the interior and underhood, to appreciate just how amazingly simple and straightforward these Falcons were.
Is this a 1961 grille?
Thanks, Bob & Howard, it is a 1961! I didn’t run the VIN as I normally do and missed the 1960 concave grille rather than the convex grille on this car. Thanks for catching that!
Had a minor infatuation with a small Ranchero, until I actually drove one. Bob is right( good catch), it has a ’61 grill, and there may be some method to my madness, shouldn’t there be another 0 here? Heck, I could even afford this on my SS, has the meltdown begun? This really is a stark example, and it’s even an automatic. Trouble a brewin’ in the classic car market.
I read, this truck cost about $1879 new, and was indeed the lowest priced pickup. A 1960 F100 was almost $2grand. However, you didn’t get a conventional pickup here. The load rating was only about 800 pounds, so that crushed Lincoln in Goldfinger in the back of one ( a ’65?) would have broke these in half. For the extra hundred bucks, most went with the regular pickups. Only about 21,000 1960 Rancheros were sold, compared to almost 10 times that for the F100. It’s a very nice find.
Howard, that scene in Goldfinger always cracks me up, because that cube also contains a trunk full of gold bars & a dead gangster! IRL it would’ve punched straight through the bed & buried itself in the ground. That’s just the magic of movies I guess.
Hi Joe, sharp observers will notice, the Lincoln had no motor or trans, but still would have maxed out that poor Ranchero.
I would add this to my James Bond fantasy garage as the car in Goldfinger that hauls the crunched Tbird driven by our fearless CIA agents.
Simple indeed. A nice reminder of just how good we had it.
I have a dream, that some well-funded person will create a new automobile that prioritizes durability, simplicity and practical features. If legislation would allow it.
Toyota & Honda been doin just that for years. America is just slow to react. Or non-caring.
Clean little Ranchero survivor. Those 200s are peppy. I had a 1961 Falcon that was wrecked and needed 2 front fenders, and found out that 1961 were one year only regarding body panels. So I had to order replacements from a Texas salvage yard. I don’t remember the name of the company. One fender came from a 61 Ranchero and the other from another Falcon. Shipping cost as much as the $675 fenders. I still have the Ranchero emblem that was still on the fender.
Definitely a 61 grill had one for my first car. Tried but could not kill it.
shouldn’t these be the “second “gen Rancheros , the first gens being the 57-59 Fords ?
YES, Second Generation Ranchero
And FIRST Generation of the FALCON…
Yes! Thanks, Don and Falcon Fever!
I look at Barn Finds every day. Is there any way we can get the skinny on the cars without a detailed, unnecessary history lesson on each vehicle. And while you are at it, why don’t you require a minimum of particular pictures of each vehicle that you intend to put on Barn Finds????
You are in the wrong place then. The site is merely a portal to these vehicles, you want more info, contact the seller, in the meantime, hey, leave them kids alone,,
Let’s see….1st seller does a good job of describing vehicle on Ebay & taking photos. However, how do ya get the year & tranny wrong? OK enuff. I love the half moon dog dish caps, had on my 65 Stang. The front plate says it all cuz I’m five years older than the Ranchero is. Love this. Much simpler time. No seat belts even. Ya could see the motors to work on em! Thx 4 shoutout Scotty on Raleigh; I worked, lived & played there for 40 years but retired in Northern Georgia. ✌
Rickirick, Northern Georgia must be a big thing, my uncle from Tampa retired there, too!
Many times, as I suspect here, the seller doesn’t know squat about the car itself, and generally just wants it gone. The author can only go by what’s mentioned, they don’t have psychic powers,,,do they?
Say, is Barney Fife still in Raleigh?
Ha, thanks, Howard! We’re sort of stuck in the middle of lot of the time but that’s part of the gig I guess.
I would put in 302 and a straight front axle. Give it a little attitude. I sold my 62 2 door Falcon years ago. Beautiful little hotrod.
I had a 62 plain Jane Falcon 2-dr wagon. White, 144ci, auto trans. I used it primarily for chasing parts for my shop. For fun, I bought a wrecked ’65 Falcon Sprint, 289ci, 4speed and transferrred drive train and suspension into the wagon. Also installed the buckets and console. Somewhere I found a pair of cast aluminum valve covers that said “TIGER. Powered by Ford” Fun little car!! I’m not quite sure what I did with it, but I think I traded for a ’69 Mustang in need of an engine.
I’d love to get a mid 1960s Ranchero that either came with a V8 and rear end and 5 lugs, than having to make all those very involved modifications myself. Pretty much a Sprint Ranchero. But I wouldn’t mind this one with a 200 6 banger. Manual trans even better.
What a clean interior, I didn’t expect to see that. I’d be OK with the 6 cylinder, until I got it home. Sorry to the purists, I’d have to find an 8 for it. A wrecked Mustang GT with a 5 speed could be an organ donor.
Dave, I’m all on board with that, but you’d also have to remove and reinstall a V8 rear end. Maybe an 8.5 or 9. Rather find one that was already setup that way.
Sounds like fun to me!
I owned two Falcon’s in the 70’s when I parked my Super Bee for the winters. I loved them! Both “3” on the trees. I really like this little baby!
I’d keep it pretty much just like it is. Rust and rust bubbles would have to be taken care of right away, but everything else looks great. Would love to have it but my wife says I have too many projects in the driveway and garage as is!
“Up to 30 MPG”
Yea, if you tow it to the top of the mountain and let it coast back down.
I like it just as is too with minor paint fixes required. It would be okay outside under a good breathable cover on driveway. I saved the eBay ad to see the final verdict. How is the leg room in one of these? The 66 F-100 is cramped for me at a shrunken 6′ in my old age.
Auction update: bidding ended at $6,000 and no sale.